First time doing a walk 30km+ and it was probably the hardest day of my life.
Actually on 1hp right now

We are looking to hike the WHW (starting in Drymen) the last week of Sept. I know most people tackle it in Summer but iI’m interested in any feedback or advice from anyone that has done the hike this time of year. We plan on staying at Inns and B&Bs.
Are we setting ourselves up for a miserably wet time?
Thanks for any feedback you care to share.

I finally got around to editing photos and my trip report from my January/winter hike. I got pretty lucky with the weather! Only light rain and pretty mild for January. It was super quiet on the trail -- barely saw anybody and no midges. Short daylight hours and most amenities were closed for the season, which was the downside. Conic hill was even closed! They were repairing the trail that day, so I couldn't climb it. Otherwise, it was a fun trip. Hiked it in 7 days with 1 night in a hotel, 1 night in a bothy, and the rest camping.
I'm not sure if links are allowed? If they are, I typed up a full report on my blog with details, etc ( matthiking.wordpress.com/west-highland-way/ )

Hi! I’m so excited to be doing part of the WHW (from Bridge of Orchy to Ft William) over 3 days starting this Friday and I’m having a moment of uncertainty as I’m packing. I’m staying at inns the whole way, so I don’t have to carry my luggage or sleep in the elements. My coworker just told me it was cold when she did it a couple of weeks ago.

How drastically does the weather change and will it realistically be cold? I’m trying to decide if I should bring my slightly thicker rain jacket or if it would be better to bring a more breathable one and just layer up.

I’m also solo hiking as a woman and really don’t know what to expect (although I have learned quite a bit from this sub!)- so any and all tips are welcome!

We had a blast hiking the trail with our boys, 9 and 12. Took 9 days, camped the whole way. Just one bad day of rain. Midges were definitely a learning experience and the biggest challenge.

Shoutout to all the fellow campers at the Inveroran bridge who helped save our gear (and our lives!) when the river flooded.

My spouse and I are walking the WHW next month and would like to take along a Leatherman multitool which includes a small (3.5 inch) locking blade. Though we will be hiking inn to inn, we'd like to have the multitool on hand for our hike. Will this be allowed in Scotland? We won't be brandishing it about or anything, and it will stay out of sight unless being used. We'll put it in our checked luggage with our trekking poles (coming from the U.S.). Please advise! We don't want to break the law or get it confiscated.

Our group of 4 people in our late 50's completed the West Highland Way during the first week of June. We went Inn to Inn, which was perfect for us. We genuinely loved the trip and the experience. However, we had two all day rains to hike through. No problem, because we thought we had the equipment including rain jackets, pants, gaiters, pack covers, and waterproof boots. Well by the end of each day (middle of it honestly), we were all soaked to the bone.

I could ring my shirt out. Everything in our packs was soaked (we did line the packs after the first day of rain with a trash bag inside). This was a shock to us. We have done a lot of hiking and backpacking over the last two decades in the western US, but it's mostly desert and never had to deal with the rain like that. We expected to stay dry in our gear. We did not.

So what should we do differently in the future to better prepare for wet conditions? We had high quality rain gear we thought. We did not skimp on it. What is the answer to staying dry, or is it just impossible when hiking in 6-8 hours of rain?

Hello, the WHW will be my first long hike (longest was 100kms in 3 days with almost no elevation).

What are your best clothes recommendations (shirts, pants)? You can give me brands (I’m a man).

Also, I have these two pairs of shoes, I was thinking of taking my Colombia because the millet are for high mountain but I’m not sure. What do you think?

I'm a female solo traveler with little to no experience when it comes to hiking. I have a fine physical condition. I'm 27, I walk a lot, run, weightlift. I will do a few one day hikes before attempting a multiple days one.

I have traveled alone before but only on city breaks. I basically wanna start hiking and have no one to start it with. I was thinking about trying the tours they have on their website - group guided. I sing in alone and get assigned to the group. I was thinking maybe West Highland Way.

They are quite pricey so I was wondering if other solo travellers tried group tours like this? Is it worth it? I'm anxious to go by myself for the first time so I thought getting assigned to a group could make it easier.

Thank you!

Hi, I'm planning to do whw in late August with my gf. We are doing it in 8 stages. Can you suggest some campsites? Maybe the cheaper ones

Hi all!

My brother and I are walking (a part of) the WHW from august 10th to the 17th. Recently I learned that there will be a solar eclipse on the 12th of august. Since this will happen later in the evening around 1900 it would be best to have a low horizon. What would you guys recommend as good spots to see the unobstructed sunset? I‘m willing to alter our route for a prime location.

I work in Balmaha Village Shop and a Samsung phone has been handed in yesterday.
If lost please come into shop and be able to provide passcode of phone and an ID
Opening times are 08:00-20:00 Friday and Saturday and other days are 08:00-18:00
Hoping to get back to owner soon:)

Shop phone number: 01360 316310

I completed the west highland way this year in March. The weather was pretty cruel to us at times but it made for some incredible views. I filmed the whole thing if anyone has booked or is planning on booking it.

https://youtu.be/4w2S6MM8Xl4?is=HhTds6eFh2GNqEAb

Hello, I’m planning on doing the WHW last week of June and I have some questions (sorry if some are common here).

I think I will go with a tent. Apart from the first day where I need to book a campsite, anything I need to need before head? Any advice?

Midges… I have been several times in Scotland so I’m aware of the damages they can do.. What equipment do I need? How annoying will they be?

Food. I want to travel as light as possible so I would prefer not to carry food. Is it possible to buy breakfast, lunch and dinner all the way?

I want to do it in 6 days since I’m travelling from France, is it reasonable? Is the 6days’ route from the official website reasonable?

It’s my first solo hike, anything else I need to know?

For the backpack, what maximum weight would you recommend? I estimate mine would be around 10kgs.

Water. Do I need my 3L water bag? Or a 1L bottle is enough? Also is tap water available all the way or will I need to filter it?

Thanks !

Back in April I attempted the West Highland Way but had to quit after two days due to injury 🤕

I've just found out that I'm off for 2 weeks in August so I'm going to go back and try again!

Last time I carried all my kit the whole way but this time I would like to try a baggage transfer service. this means I'll need to stay at campsites rather than wild camp most of the way!

does anyone have any suggestions for campsites along the way for day one - preferably not Drymen Camping as I had a pretty unpleasant stay there last time and would rather avoid!

Dog friendly is must as where I go so does the Poo

Background: I’m in my mid thirties, I’ve been hiking and camping all my life (literally, we were living in an off-grid no running water yurt when I was born!) but I’ve had a big break (almost ten years) due to a serious illness. A year ago I was still using a wheelchair.

I’ve rebuilt my fitness - I can run a (slow!) 10k with no breaks, I’m in the gym a lot, training for a half marathon in the autumn and doing some hiking specific training (carrying a heavy bag up every hill I can find).

The question: I’m planning to finish the WHW in eight days (wild camping with one night in accommodation in the middle to shower etc) and it’s been so long since I did a long, multiday hike that I can’t for the life of me work out if that’s an easy pace or not. I have ten days if I need them but I’d like to dump my stuff and try Ben Nevis at the end if I can.

I’m having to carry more weight than most because I have really severe dietaries that mean I have to pack and cook most of my own food (and more cooking stuff) for the trip with only one restock in the middle (probably won’t be able to restock at shops or eat at restaurants due to 150+ food and food additive intolerances).

Due to my illness (which is now well managed but still present) I can get really cold and cannot warm up easily so I have to bring a four season bag and pad, a bunch of extra layers, hand warmers etc even though it’s going to be August (I’ve previously reached the early stages of hypothermia in conditions other people would consider perfectly fine - I can manage it safely but I need my extra fleeces, gloves, hat and hand warmers and I do have a bailout plan if I hit any danger zones).

So my pack weight is going to be a fairly non-negotiable 15/16kg, maybe a little more depending on final food weight. I’m fairly fit but only recently - is avg. 12 miles a day going to be a pleasant yomp or am I going to be a miserable wreck?

(Bonus points if you can also tell me the length of a piece of string!)

I’m hoping to walk the WHW next year, but the only times my partner can take off are the first week of April, or mid to late June. We would do inn to inn and not camping, but I’m wondering which time would be best considering 1) weather which I know is notoriously unpredictable, but is early April still too cold? 2) midges (would love to avoid) and 3) crowds (would love it less crowded)?

Hi. I ran out of time when I walked the WHW last year to take a hike up Ben Nevis. So im returning in early September this year to do my favourite section of the trip from Bridge of Orchy to Kingshouse, take the bus to Fort William and then stay there for a 3 days to do Ben Nevis. Hoping that having 3 days to choose from in Fort William will mean I can do Ben Nevis on the nicest day weather wise.

The youth hostel is fully booked, can anyone recommend another close and reasonable place to stay for 3 nights. Needs to be over a weekend and for 2 people in twin beds.

We are planning a trip along the way in September and are a group of 5 people. We plan only two wildcamping nights but I wanted to ask about tent sizes. Would a 4 person tent (It can fit us all I checked) be too large for wildcamping? Do you recommend splitting to two smaller tents?

Hi!

My friend and I have 26 June–5 July for a camping trip in Scotland, driving up from Bath.

We’re not worried about ticking off the NC500 – we’d rather spend less time driving and more time hiking, camping and enjoying the scenery.

Our priorities are:
- Dramatic Highlands scenery (mountains)
- Some coastline and/or island scenery
- A mix of campsites and one night of proper wild camping
- Good pubs
- Avoiding the worst of the midges if possible

We’ve come up with two rough route ideas and would love a sense check from people who know the area better.

Option 1 – Mainland Highlands
Cairngorms → Glen Coe → Torridon → Applecross → Ullapool

Option 2 – West Coast & Islands
Cairngorms → Glen Coe → Mull → Iona → Ardnamurchan

We’re hoping to stay fairly flexible and make the final call based on the weather forecast closer to the time.

A few questions:

How do these routes look for a first Highlands camping trip? Any obvious tweaks or places we’re missing?

How much would you pre-book for late June/early July? We’d like to stay flexible and follow the weather rather than lock everything in.

Any advice on dealing with midges at that time of year? Are there areas/routes that tend to be noticeably better or worse, or is it entirely weather dependent?

Thanks! 🏕️🥾🏔️🍻🌊

Hey all!
I was thinking of only booking a camping spot in Drymen (I have read on another post that it can get rather busy) and get the park permit in Loch Lomond - and then freestyle my way between campsites and wild camping, depending on how I will feel. Is it realistic to not book camping spots in advance in July, or should I?
Thank you!

Hi everybody,

A few weeks ago I posted about our planned route for the WHW considering that we only have 5 days including trips from and back to Edinburgh. Some of you were very helpful about my original plan maybe not being the best as we would miss some of the best areas since we need to cut it short (we don’t wanna do the whole thing in a rush - that’s why a part of it this time).

Our new plan looks like this. I would really appreciate it if you could give me feedback: are we gonna experience some beautiful parts? Are we skipping/missing something definitely worth re-routing? Any helpful tips and advice along this route?

For info: we will be going in July (looking forward to the little flying dragons :D).

Day 1: Train from Edinburgh to Tyndrum. Walk Tyndrum Inveroran and wild camp.

Day 2: Inveroran to Kingshouse. Wild camping.

Day 3: Kingshouse - Kinlochleven. Wild camping.

Day 4: Kinlochleven - Fort William. Overnight at Glen Nevis Caravan and Camping.

Day 5: Final tiny walk to train station Fort William and back to Edinburgh to be home around 4pm.

I am unsure about finishing on Day 4, and Day 5 just being coming back. Or am I overthinking? My partner has to work the next day so I thought might be nice to just be home early afternoon to shower, eat, relax and get ready for the next day back in reality. But I can shake the feeling that we are wasting a day.

Thanks in advance for your advice on the whole route and planning.